Tired of online attacks and slut shaming, actor who was assaulted says ‘let me live’
Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.The survivor in the 2017 Kerala actor assault case has shared a pointed message after a video by the second accused resurfaced on social media. The video, which features Martin Antony, who drove her car on the night of the assault, was widely shared, triggering fresh waves of online abuse and derogatory comments against her.On Friday, December 19, the survivor reflected on her decision to approach the police immediately after the assault, writing: “My mistake was this– when an act of violence was committed against me, I immediately filed a complaint with the police and moved forward demanding legal action.”She spoke about the relentless scrutiny survivors face when old material is circulated again online. “I should have accepted everything that happened that day as fate, stayed silent without telling anyone, and later, when that video surfaces, I should have killed myself because I wouldn’t know what to say to those who would ask, ‘Why didn’t you file a police complaint back then?’” she wrote.Referring to the video allegedly recorded by Martin Antony before he went to jail, the survivor said, “In that video, he might as well have said I am the one who took the nude video.”Addressing those who spread what she described as perverse statements, she wrote, “To those who make such perverse statements and to those who spread them, I can only say, may neither you nor anyone in your family ever have to face such a situation.”She ended her post with a request: “Not a victim, not a survivor, just a simple human being!! let me live.”The Kerala Police registered a case against Martin Antony on December 18 through the Thrissur City Police for revealing the survivor’s identity and defaming her through the video. Police have also said legal action will be initiated against those who shared or circulated the content.The video, allegedly recorded earlier when Martin Antony was out on bail, resurfaced after the sentencing in the case.It was on December 8 that the District and Principal Sessions Court in Kochi convicted six accused — Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, B Manikandan, Vijeesh VP, Salim H alias Vadival Salim, and Pradeep, for abducting and sexually assaulting the actor in February 2017, sentencing them to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment. Malayalam actor Dileep, the eighth accused, on trial for masterminding the assault, was acquitted citing lack of evidence.
Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.
THE survivor in the 2017 Kerala actor assault case has shared a pointed message after a video by the second accused resurfaced on social media.
The video, which features Martin Antony (pictured), who drove her car on the night of the assault, was widely shared, triggering fresh waves of online abuse and derogatory comments against her.
On Friday, December 19, the survivor reflected on her decision to approach the police immediately after the assault, writing: “My mistake was this– when an act of violence was committed against me, I immediately filed a complaint with the police and moved forward demanding legal action.”
She spoke about the relentless scrutiny survivors face when old material is circulated again online.
“I should have accepted everything that happened that day as fate, stayed silent without telling anyone, and later, when that video surfaces, I should have killed myself because I wouldn’t know what to say to those who would ask, ‘Why didn’t you file a police complaint back then?’” she wrote.
Referring to the video allegedly recorded by Martin Antony before he went to jail, the survivor said, “In that video, he might as well have said I am the one who took the nude video.”
Addressing those who spread what she described as perverse statements, she wrote, “To those who make such perverse statements and to those who spread them, I can only say, may neither you nor anyone in your family ever have to face such a situation.”
She ended her post with a request: “Not a victim, not a survivor, just a simple human being!! let me live.”
The Kerala Police registered a case against Martin Antony on December 18 through the Thrissur City Police for revealing the survivor’s identity and defaming her through the video. Police have also said legal action will be initiated against those who shared or circulated the content.
The video, allegedly recorded earlier when Martin Antony was out on bail, resurfaced after the sentencing in the case.
It was on December 8 that the District and Principal Sessions Court in Kochi convicted six accused — Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, B Manikandan, Vijeesh VP, Salim H alias Vadival Salim, and Pradeep, for abducting and sexually assaulting the actor in February 2017, sentencing them to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment.
Malayalam actor Dileep, the eighth accused, on trial for masterminding the assault, was acquitted citing lack of evidence.
